


listen, the birds sing

by strawberry_sky



Category: Not Another D&D Podcast (Podcast)
Genre: F/F, Post-Canon, we have decided.....to be soft
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-23
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:35:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23806996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strawberry_sky/pseuds/strawberry_sky
Summary: after everything, after the gem and the war and the end of the world, there are still a lot of years left in an elven lifespan. alanis intends to face them alone, but she keeps finding herself back on moonshine cybin's doorstep, time and time again.
Relationships: Alanis/Moonshine Cybin (Not Another D&D Podcast)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 39





	listen, the birds sing

**Author's Note:**

  * For [KLStarre](https://archiveofourown.org/users/KLStarre/gifts).



> happy birthday kestrel!!!! i used your birthday as an excuse to finally get my act together and actually finish writing this. appreciate you <3  
> also HUGE shout-out to meredith @lovelyjo for betareading this for me and also for our single shared braincell leading us to the exact same birthday present idea. naddpod fanfic cinematic universe.

The thing about elves is, they live very long lives. 

Alanis has already lived a very long life. She did the whole hero thing. She saved the world, and then she saved it again from the way she saved it the first time. She bent time. She fell in love, and she lost it, and that was more than enough. She’s done everything she wanted to do and so many things she never wanted to do and she’s still here, against all odds. She’s still here even though the people she loves most are dead and gone--Ulfgar, falling in battle with blood on his face and a battle scream on his lips, like he always said he would. Thiala, already lost long before Beverly plunged his sword into her divine heart. And for some reason, Alanis is still here.

So she wanders. They’re all wandering, these days, sometimes alone, sometimes in small groups. There’s lots to clean up, lots to keep them busy for at least a couple years. Alanis takes Balnor and Beverly and Erlin to the Feywild to hang out with the halflings who still live there. Moonshine and Bev and Hardwon all come with her to Ezry to see what's salvageable from Duttle's workshop. She spends some time in Gladeholm, working with Lucanus on figuring out how the Allcaster can never be used again. He offers her a job, either at the university or for the Council of Gladeholm. She turns both down. 

Mostly she just wanders, alone. She skips from plane to plane. She takes notes, and learns new spells, and develops theories about things that don’t really matter. She talks to elementals and celestials and eldritch beings and she thinks about just drifting, just getting lost in the Astral Sea or the Infinite Staircase and becoming just a little pinprick of light in the velvet distance.

Instead, she finds herself at the Crick, knocking lightly on the wooden doorframe of Moonshine Cybin’s stump. The door, or what passes for one, is hanging wide open. Alanis has never seen it closed.

“Moonshine?” she calls out as she steps across the threshold.

Instantly, she’s hit with a wall of smells, savory and rich and inviting, and then she's hit by a small furry body launching itself into the pocket of her coat. 

"PawPaw, we've discussed this!" Moonshine says in an exasperated tone, turning from the stove where she's cooking in the largest pot Alanis has ever seen. Her cloud of red hair is being held back by a bunch of mushrooms that have knitted themselves together into a sort of headband, and her freckled face is flushed with the heat of the kitchen. "Hey, Alanis," she says with a smile, throwing her arms around Alanis. Despite the hot room and the sounds of shouting from outside and the feeling of PawPaw jumping from her pocket to climb up Moonshine's overalls, Alanis is already feeling herself start to relax.

"Is this a bad time?" she says, pulling away from Moonshine's embrace. "Things seem frantic."

Moonshine frowns. "Frantic?"

Behind her, the pot is starting to bubble over. Alanis quickly sends out a Mage Hand to grab the wooden spoon from where Moonshine dropped it and stir the soup before it can overflow. 

“Never mind,” says Alanis with a weak smile, gently setting the spoon back down before Moonshine can even notice. “I just stopped by to say hi. I was in the area." In this case, "in the area" means "on the Material Plane." Honestly, Alanis isn't totally sure what brought her to Moonshine's doorstep. Coincidence is easier to explain. 

“Good timing,” Moonshine says, turning her attention back to the soup. “I just got back from Gladeholm a couple hours ago.” 

“Oh, how was that?” Alanis hoists herself up to perch lightly on the counter next to the stove. “I haven’t been there in a _hot_ minute.” Honestly, she’s not sure _how_ much time has passed since she was last in Gladeholm. That probably should concern her more than it does.

Moonshine shrugs. “Eh, you know how I feel about high elves. Present company excluded, ‘course,” she adds quickly, reaching out a reassuring hand to Alanis’s thigh. “I love PeePaw Luke but that was just entirely too much time without seeing a single nannerfly, you feel me?” 

“I feel you,” says Alanis, even though she knows she doesn’t feel it in the same way Moonshine does.

“The water slides are coming along nicely, though,” Moonshine says, grabbing a full handful of spice and tossing it into the soup. 

"Still don't understand how that wound up being part of the terms of you guys overthrowing the king."

"It was a weird day. It was a weird few days." Moonshine dips the wooden spoon into the soup and blows on it. "Here, taste this." 

She holds the spoon out to Alanis, who leans forward and sips from the spoon, then immediately feels her eyes start welling up with tears as the spice hits her sinuses. "It's good," she coughs out.

Moonshine laughs. "Understood," she says teasingly, withdrawing the spoon and holding it in front of her own chest so PawPaw can taste the soup. The possum leans out of her overall bib and sips with surprising decorum, then gives an approving " _reer_."

"It really is good, aside from setting my mouth on fire," says Alanis, still appreciating the smoky-richness. "I always like your cooking."

"Even when it won't give you temporary hit points?" says Moonshine slyly.

"Especially then, honestly." When it's just food for food's sake, not food to prepare them for a battle. 

Moonshine nods, and gives Alanis a slow, significant look that tells her she understood the subtext. "Hardwon says the same thing."

Something about the fondness in her voice as she says Hardwon's name makes Alanis clear her throat and ask, "So are you two, like, together?" She winces at the forced casualness in her tone. It should be a simple question, but the answer feels significant for reasons that Alanis hasn't entirely sorted through yet.

Moonshine carefully finishes stirring the soup and puts the lid back on the pot before she answers. “We love each other, 'course we do. But we’ve loved each other for years. He’s my best friend. He gets me like almost no one else does. I was there when he died and came back to life, and he did the same for me. It’s a kind of intimacy that doesn’t have words to call it, you know?” 

Alanis nods. "Yeah," she says, slowly. "Yeah that's...that's how it always was with me and Thiala, too. A long time ago."

If this is new information to Moonshine, she doesn't show it on her face. She just moves to Alanis's other side, effortlessly lifting herself to sit next to Alanis on the countertop. It's not a very large surface, meaning that Moonshine's shoulder is lightly resting against Alanis's and their thighs are pressed together and suddenly those points of simple, comfortable contact are all Alanis can focus on. 

They lapse into silence, a silence stretches on long enough that Alanis thinks it would be uncomfortable if she was here with anyone else. Instead, it’s just easy. It’s a warm room that smells good. It’s the sound of crackling fires and running water and croaking bullywugs outside the window. It’s not even feeling like she needs to pull out her pipe. 

"Hardwon and I aren't _exclusive_ , or anything, if _that's_ what you were asking."

Alanis glances over, surprised. Moonshine has a wry smile and a mischievous glint in her green eyes, and her freckled face is flushed with the heat of the kitchen, and a few red curls are escaping from behind her mushroom headband and she smells like the forest after a rainstorm and that wasn't _really_ what Alanis had been asking but shit, maybe it should be. 

She clears her throat and blinks rapidly. “I, uh--”

Moonshine laughs, not unkindly, and both of them are staring at each other in the hot smoky kitchen and for a split second Alanis thinks maybe she’ll lean forward or maybe Moonshine will lean forward or maybe they’ll both lean forward at the same time and--

There’s a loud hissing from behind Alanis as the pot of soup boils over. “Oh, shit!” goes Moonshine, leaping lightly off the counter and hurrying over to grab the spoon and stir the soup, pointedly not looking at Alanis as she does so, cheeks practically scarlet now. 

Alanis clears her throat, also quickly looking away. Her hand fumbles into her pocket for her pipe. “Anyway I--I probably should be going.” 

“You just got here!” says Moonshine, turning around again. PawPaw, clearly anticipating the coming neglect of dinner, jumps out of her bib and takes ownership of the soup spoon.

Alanis is pulling out her pipe and already halfway to the door, retreating, back to the world, back to her thoughts. “Really, it’s okay, I--” 

“Alanis! _Stay_. Just for tonight.” Moonshine crosses the threshold, puts herself not _between_ Alanis and the doorway but right next to her. “I want you to stay.”

Alanis has been alone for so long. She’s gotten really, really good at it. She doesn’t need--well, anyone. She doesn’t need anyone.

She says as much. “Thanks, Moonshine, but I’m good,” with a half-smile as she pushes again toward the doorway. “I’m fine. I know how to be alone.” 

“I _know_ ,” says Moonshine, suddenly indignant. “Just because you know how to be alone doesn’t mean you _have_ to be alone. But if you wanna be alone, fine. I’m just asking you to stay the night, nothing more. It’s not some profound gesture.” 

“It’s...not?” Alanis pauses, pipe in hand, other hand already summoning a _Teleport_. She looks back. 

Moonshine’s arms are crossed over her chest, and she looks distinctly annoyed. And incredibly cute. “No! I just missed you, is all. I just like...I just like havin’ you around.” 

“Oh,” says Alanis, quietly.

“Stay,” says Moonshine, holding out her hand. “Let’s eat soup. Let’s listen to music. Let’s stick our feet in the Crick and watch the frogs.” 

Alanis turns, and lets the _Teleport_ die in her hand as she takes Moonshine’s. “Watch the frogs do what?” 

“Get nasty, mostly,” says Moonshine with a shrug and a glint in her eye that sends heat to Alanis’s cheeks. 

“Sounds fascinating,” Alanis murmurs, and Moonshine squeezes her hand, and Alanis leans down and Moonshine tips her head up and then their lips are together and Moonshine’s lips are wet and soft and she tastes like the soup she’s been making and also like mushrooms and also like blackberries. 

Moonshine is smiling through the kiss, and after a moment, lips moving against Alanis’s, she whispers “still think you should be going?” 

Alanis answers with another kiss. 

**Author's Note:**

> title from "In Our Bedroom After The War" by Stars  
> find me at drinkingdeadpeopletea.tumblr.com!


End file.
